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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: field · present · pitcher · track · mine · tear · ball · lean

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. track — a song
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. tear — to rip
  6. field — for sport
  7. track — a path
  8. present — there
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — from crying
  11. ball — a dance
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. ball — a great time
  14. field — farmland
  15. field — a subject
  16. mine — for digging
  17. lean — thin
  18. present — the time now
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. lean — to bend
  22. present — a gift
  23. track — to keep track
  24. pitcher — a jug

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com